What do you call a guy who sets off on a 3,600-mile road trip in the dead of winter to drive the Rocky Mountain chain from Alaska to southern Colorado? Bear in mind that this is the same guy who goes kayaking with his Australian shepherd - in the ocean.

Crazy doesn't quite sum it up, because there was a fair amount of planning up front. Adventurous is probably closer to the mark, because these are the undertakings that lead to stories - for your buddies and for your future grandchildren. "That's nothing. I once drove the Alcan in December with a dog and two cats."

Hey, it's got to be better than sitting in an office attending a budget meeting or deciding annual employee raises. Who's the crazy one now?

Day four: This is my second time to drive through western Yukon and the first time to see it. My first trip was on the drive up to Alaska in August 2004 and the Interior was having an exceptionally bad year for wildfires. A thick layer of smoke hung over Whitehorse and as I rose in elevation on the drive to Haines Junction, I climbed into the smoke layer which would last all the way to Anchorage, almost 700 miles away.

The road conditions were good for the most part between Kluane Wilderness Village and Whitehorse, but my drive time was severely impacted by the spectacular scenery. One of my goals on this trip is to stop and take pictures rather than feeling rushed to get to the final destination. This is one trip I swore would be about the journey, rather than the destination.

The sun rose around 11 a.m. and I found myself driving straight into it. A strange thing happens to people who live in overcast climates. After going a week or more without seeing the actual sun, you can sometimes get a defensive feeling when the sun does come out. What is that strange object in the sky blinding my eyes? For a brief bit you can even find yourself fearing the sun. Fortunately the feeling soon passes and you begin to bask in the rays.

As for the roads in western Yukon, sometimes I wonder if the highway isn't just a gravel road with a yellow stripe painted down the middle. If it is paved, the snow and ice chew up the surface in very short order. The paving and very frequent frost heaves are the obvious downside to travel in this region. Forget the speed limit signs that say 90km/hr. As soon as you speed up, you'll hit a section of frost heave and be forced to slow down. The best strategy while driving through this region is to hit the hazards at no more than 35 miles per hour to prevent damage to truck or trailer.

Hazards aside, here is what the western Yukon stretch of highway has going for it: The known frost heave hazards are well marked so long as you drive during the day time. The road and shoulder are relatively wide. There are broad clearings on each side of the road so that it is easy to see wildlife approaching the highway. Rest areas are marked with signs 2km in advance. Lastly, the views are wonderful. So slow down and enjoy the ride and the scenery. When are you going to be in the Yukon again?

A town I was pleasantly surprised to see was Destruction Bay. I was half-way tempted to stop and spend a night or two because the mountains to the south and Kluane Lake to the north are very inviting. If I hadn't just spent the night 40 miles up the road, I might have stopped to walk the town and the surrounding area. There are many similar places across the Yukon. This land has yet to be tamed. It's what I imagined Alaska would be like from reading about it in books.¹ Tourists should go to Alaska. The Yukon is where poets and dreamers should go to find the unspoiled wilderness. Many see the Yukon as simply a region to pass through on their way to Alaska. Maybe that has been its saving grace.  

One place everyone will want to stop is along the frozen shores of Kluane Lake. Tall jagged peaks rise to the south in the direction of the border with southeast Alaska. To the north of the lake, the peaks are more rounded showing where mountains have been spared the scarring action of Pleistocene glaciers. 

Those wishing to stop in Haines Junction can find electric hook ups at the Glacier View Inn for $15 a night. The road from Haines Junction to Whitehorse is in very good shape with good pavement and many long stretches of straight road. Most² of the the frost heave is behind you.

As you continue eastward, little signs appear that you are passing from a coastal region to a continental climate. More open parks with tall grass appear from time to time. The birch give way to groves of aspen. Boreal forests of black spruce are broken up by occasional stands of fir trees. And a lone hawk flies above the road - a stark contrast to a year and a half of ravens in the far north.

Pulling into Whitehorse, I was unable to find an open RV park or a motel with plug-ins, so the night was spent in the Wal-Mart parking lot which, by chance, offered a rogue wireless internet connection in the area. Hyway Shell has regular and high-octane gas, but no propane despite what their ad in the Milepost says.

Under a near-full moon Taiya and I settled in for dinner and a warm night's sleep on battery power as the temperature dropped into single digits. The truck sits unplugged for the night with 705 miles on the trip odometer.

It's interesting. Before the trip, I was very apprehensive about making a 3,600-mile drive in the winter across the northern regions of the continent. But after the views today, I'd gladly drive it again without any hesitation.

Day five
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¹ I know Alaskans will be ticked off by that statement, but it's true. There are no big-city amenities to corrupt this land. Much of Alaska's road system has sold out to the tourists and developers. Denali Park used to be nothing more than Lynx Creek Campground and the Denali Salmon Bake which, by the way, used to be all you can eat salmon and halibut in 1985. Now it's helicopter tours and major tourist amenities. Progress, but at a price.
² Most, but not all. You still need to keep an eye out for hazards.
 

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